Man Faces Assault, False Imprisonment Charges

WEST OCEAN CITY – A local man with a checkered past was arrested and charged last week with several serious offenses from first-degree assault, false imprisonment and numerous sex offenses after an incident in West Ocean City earlier this month.

On Nov. 2, a Worcester County Sheriff’s Deputy was dispatched to an area on Route 611 in West Ocean City to check on the welfare of a female victim in a van. The deputy responded to the area, but found no trace of the van or the female victim.

A few days later, on Nov. 7, the female victim called the deputy and related the details of an incident that began back on Nov. 1. The victim told police she was living in a shelter in Salisbury when a man, later identified as Mike Ivey, 53, of Ocean Pines, came in and asked if anyone wanted to earn money by cleaning condominiums in Ocean City. The female victim agreed and got into Ivey’s van and rode with him to Ocean City.

Ivey allegedly told the victim he owned several properties and offered her a place to live as long as he employed her. Ivey then showed the victim three houses along Route 611 and told her to pick the one she wanted to live in. At some point, Ivey allegedly drove the victim in his van to a campground off Route 611 where they got into an argument. The victim told police Ivey physically threw her out of the van and took her cell phone, but she later got back into the van and headed back to the residence on Route 611 where she was staying.

It was at that point that the victim learned Ivey did not own the properties. According to the victim’s statement, Ivey then became violent and began hitting her several times in the head and then threatened to sexually assault her, according to police reports.

Throughout the incident, the female victim could hear her cell phone ringing repeatedly and at one point was able to open it so that anyone that was calling her could hear what was going on. Ivey soon discovered the open phone and closed and hid it, during which the victim attempted to escape. However, she could not get away from Ivey, who allegedly grabbed her and threw her back on the bed and began hitting her again, according to police reports.

The victim told police Ivey allegedly threw her down on the bed face first and pushed on her back and neck area so hard that she had trouble breathing and began to hyperventilate. The victim told police she ultimately threw up while Ivey was pushing on her neck and back and trying unsuccessfully to have sex with her. The victim told police she was in fear for her life and was afraid of what her attacker would do next, but Ivey calmed down eventually and let her put her clothes back on.

The victim told police Ivey later apologized and said what he did was wrong. He also allegedly told her, “let’s forget about this and let me buy you a beer,” according to police reports. Ivey then went back to his van, but the victim refused to go with him. When he drove off, she grabbed her belongings and ran across the street to a nearby bar where she called a friend to come get her, according to police reports.

The victim told police she waited a few days to report the incident because she was scared and also embarrassed about what had happened. She later was able to identify Ivey from a police photo line-up and he was arrested and charged with first- and second-degree assault, attempted first- and second-degree sex offense, reckless endangerment and false imprisonment. He was taken into custody last weekend and was ordered at first to be held without bail. On Tuesday, however, his bond was set at $50,000 during a bail review hearing and he was later released.

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